VANCOUVER, June 7, 2012 /PRNewswire/ - Air Canada welcomed in Vancouver
today the chief executives of more than 20 Star Alliance member
airlines. The annual Star Alliance strategy meeting of CEOs marks the
fifteenth anniversary of the world's first and most comprehensive
airline alliance that was founded in 1997 by Air Canada, Lufthansa,
Scandinavian Airlines, THAI and United Airlines and has since grown to
encompass 25 of the world's leading airlines worldwide.
"We are pleased to host the chief executives of our Star Alliance
partners in Vancouver for this annual forum to discuss the strategy for
Star Alliance going forward," said Calin Rovinescu, President and Chief
Executive Officer of Air Canada. "Over the past fifteen years, Star
Alliance has consistently distinguished itself as the world's premiere
airline group. Star Alliance was founded on the principle of offering
customers the reach of a global network beyond what any single carrier
is able to do on its own, and rewarding our respective customers'
loyalty by providing reciprocal privileges across the world's leading
airlines. Working together to meet our customers' international travel
needs has become our hallmark, one that we continue to build as we look
for ways to simplify our customers' travel experience and earn their
loyalty."
"On behalf of the Star Alliance CEOs I would like to thank Air Canada
for hosting our annual Chief Executive Board Strategy Forum during
their 75th Anniversary year," said Mark Schwab, Chief Executive Officer
of Star Alliance. "While modern technology has greatly improved global
communications in the business world, the feedback we receive from our
customers confirms our own belief that face-to-face meetings will never
be replaced by 'virtual' ones. These regular meetings of our top
executives ensure that our strategy continues to meet the changing
needs of our customers, even as Star Alliance itself celebrates its
15th Anniversary year."
Examples of Star Alliance benefits for customers include check-in to
final destination, faster and smoother airport transfers, reciprocal
frequent flyer program mileage redemption and accrual that counts
towards top tier status, Star Alliance Gold and Silver benefits
including worldwide lounge access and Alliance-wide fare products such
as the popular Round the World Fare and regional Airpasses. For more
information, visit www.staralliance.com
About Star Alliance
The Star Alliance network was established in 1997 as the first truly
global airline alliance to offer worldwide reach, recognition and
seamless service to the international traveller. Its acceptance by the
market has been recognised by numerous awards, including the Air
Transport World Market Leadership Award and Best Airline Alliance by
both Business Traveller Magazine and Skytrax. The member airlines are:
Adria Airways, Aegean Airlines, Air Canada, Air China, Air New Zealand,
ANA, Asiana Airlines, Austrian, Blue1, Brussels Airlines, Croatia
Airlines, EGYPTAIR, Ethiopian Airlines, LOT Polish Airlines, Lufthansa,
Scandinavian Airlines, Singapore Airlines, South African Airways,
SWISS, TAM Airlines, TAP Portugal, Turkish Airlines, THAI, United and
US Airways. Avianca-TACA, Copa Airlines, EVA Air and Shenzhen Airlines
have been announced as future members. Overall, the Star Alliance
network offers more than 20,500 daily flights to 1,293 airports in 190
countries.
About Air Canada
Air Canada is Canada's largest domestic and international airline
serving more than 175 destinations on five continents. Canada's flag
carrier is the 15th largest commercial airline in the world and in 2011
served more than 33 million customers. Air Canada provides scheduled
passenger service directly to 59 Canadian cities, 56 destinations in
the United States and 63 cities in Europe, the Middle East, Asia,
Australia, the Caribbean, Mexico and South America. Air Canada is a
founding member of Star Alliance. Air Canada customers can collect
Aeroplan miles for future rewards through Canada's leading loyalty
program, and Top Tier members enjoy reciprocal frequent flyer benefits
including lounge and priority services. In 2011, Air Canada was ranked
Best International Airline in North America in a worldwide survey of
more than 18 million airline passengers conducted by independent
research firm Skytrax.
Note to photo editors: A high resolution photo from the meeting is available to download at www.aircanada.com/en/media
SOURCE AIR CANADA
